As the WTO meeting
in Cancun draws to a close, the need to create a culture
of thinking inclusively about economic life sounds
with ever greater clarity. The alternative is a strident
factionalism in which self-assertion rules, the evidence
for this is not to be found in human nature alone,
but rather in the concepts used to describe our economic
world conception. But what if we can think and talk
in a way which allows us to conceive a humane world
? Economists, politicians, journalists, protestors,
corporate lobbyists might discover a common language
afterall. We invite you to a series of Thursday evening
events that aim to explore contemporary economic issues
within the context of a brief introduction leading
to open conversation. If you would like to display
this programme on a notice board you can download
it at - http://www.talkingeconomics.co.uk/poster.doc
- I look forward to your participation, Arthur Edwards
-

Retirement Revisited Grasping
the Pensions Nettle: Modern pension funding
makes assumptions about demography and growth that
may no be longer valid. It also tends to work through
inflationary investment in property or playing the
stock market, and relies on casting values forward.
Could we not fund pensions in a more direct manner
by investing in new activities, rather than buildings
and the stock exchange, and by using present-time
money transfers. More radically, should we simply
abandon them altogether or have they become an inalienable
right?

These
events are organised by members of the Associative
Economics Network, established in 1998 to encourage
the development of an associative approach to modern
economic life. Membership of the Network is open to
all and entails no obligations. The annual fee of
£10 includes bi-monthly issues of e2 - Journal
of Associative Economics. Associative Economics is
a non-partisan approach to the wide and divergent
range of thought currently informing modern debates
- from neo-liberal to ‘alternative’, and
including the ideas of Rudolf Steiner. If
you would like to join, please register online at
www.ae-institute.com. or send your name and address
together with £10 to Centre for Associative
Economics, PO Box 341, Canterbury CT4 8GA.

EDM 1515
in 2002 called for using the public credit. EDM 854
in 2003 asks for an Inquiry into that the possible benefits
of PUBLICLY-CREATED MONEY. EDM1515 with 24 and EDM 854
with 26 signatures have thus set signals for understanding
the mechanisms of money creation and supply in a Parliamentary
context. Interest on debt constitute some 22% of taxpayerâs
money spent by Government - generally slightly more
than the military budget . Who benefits? And how does
the exponential growth of compounding interest effect
the country's economy and government's budget? Public
Services have been suffering noticeably and the Public
Services Forum is an opportunity to draw the Union's
attention to the devastating effects of our debt- and
interest-based monetary system. John Courtneidge's article
"New initiatives for Public Finance" has been
published in "Voice of the Unions", and we
will hear a report on the latest attempts of raising
awareness among those who suffer most; the workers and
employees - whether personally through health and education,
or collectively through transport and pensions.

Dr John Courtneidge is
a chemist, town councillor, Quaker, Co-operator and
socialist. He co-founded the Campaign for Interest-Free
Money in 1997 and has been an active supporter of monetary
reform on many levels. Richard Murphy
is the mastermind behind EDM854: an accomplished accountant
and businessman. Richard Greaves worked
as a solicitor for 15 years before becoming interested
in economics and politics, including the power of banks
in money creation.

The Forum for Stable Currencies
has been hosting debates between analysts of monetary
reform, victims of banks and institutions and promoters
of LETS and Barter Companies since 1998. Programmes
have been distributed to both Houses of Parliament in
the hope that the topics debated become part of the
political agenda, especially as the EURO challenges
the sovereignty to issue a national currency.
The Forum operates from the following principles:
* The parliamentary process needs to make certain that
the Money Supply ensures its value" Lord Caithness
* Money should be the servant not the master of humanity.
* Banksâ ability to create money out of nothing
must be curtailed.
* Personal responsibility needs to be maximised.
When it is compounding interest upon interest, growth
is exponential; for profits and for debts. Any exponential
growth is unnatural and unsustainable. 97% of money
in circulation is created as interest-bearing debt.
Since 1967, notes and coin (M0), the share of the total
money supply (M4) issued by governments free of interest
has gone down from 31% to 3%, i.e. Virtually all money
is created by banks with a near monopoly. Organiser: Sabine McNeill, tel. 020
7328 3701, 21 Goldhurst Terrace London NW 6 3HB www.intraforum.net/money
sabine@globalnet.co.uk

Fee: £35 (Concession:
£25) To register contact the Centre for Continuing
Education - it is advisable to register early as demand
for places is usually high. Places are allocated on
a 'first come first served basis' and students are not
registered on the course until they have completed a
registration form and paid the fee. It is not possible
to reserve places by telephone or e-mail.

The course
will give an overview of the technology of renewable
energy and outline the basic principles of solar electricity,
solar water heating , small-scale wind power and microhydro-power
and their applications for homes, businesses and farms.
Visit the
Green Dragon website for an overview of some of
the technologies covered on the course. The course
is an ideal way to learn about the nuts and bolts
of this increasingly important range of technologies.
The course is aimed at those in the business, non-profit,
public and academic sectors who wish to get a comprehensive
introduction to renewable energy electrical technology
in general, as well as those wishing to installing
renewable energy systems in both urban or rural settings.
The emphasis will be on how things work, what it is
practicable to do, and participants will have the
opportunity to develop their own projects. At the
end of the course participants should be able to do
basic designs for renewable energy systems.

Food and accommodation
are not included in the course fee. B&B prices
start around £20 and there are lots of places
in and around the town. There are also youth hostels.
The Aberystwyth Tourist Information Centre can be
contacted on 01970 612125 or aberystwythtic@ceredigion.gov.uk.
Websites that provide lists are: www.tourism.wales.gov.uk
and www.ceredigion.gov.uk/croeso/RCheck2k1/index.htm.
The Centre of Alternative Technology and several wind
farms are in the vicinity. Aberystwyth has an arts
centre with cinema, pubs, cafes, several bookshops
and is located right on the sea - the beach is only
five minutes away from the course venue. Courses for
groups can also be arranged at this venue and at others.

Loretta
NapoleoniEconomist, political analyst and novelist,
Loretta Napoleoni has spent several years interviewing
former members of Italian armed groups. Thanks to her
unique insight into the management of armed organisations,
she has written a book on a new shocking phenomenon:
the economics of terrorism.

Modern Jihad: Tracing the Dollars
Behind the Terror Networks propels the reader into
the nether world of illegal organisations. >From
the Contras to Al Qaeda, Loretta Napoleoni maps out
the arteries of an international economic system that
feeds armed groups the world over with an endless supply
of cash. Chasing terror money, she takes the reader
from CIA headquarters to the smuggling routes of the
Far East, from the back rooms of Wall Street to hawala
exchanges in the Middle East.

The "Economy of Terror" that
Napoleoni identifies is a 1.5 trillion-dollar fast-growing
economic system. It is made up of an illegal businesses
such as arms and narcotics trading, oil and diamonds
smuggling, as well as charitable donations, profits
from legal businesses and an intricate system of finance.
Most importantly, Napoleoni reveals the interdependency
between the economies run by armed groups and western
economists. This ranges from consumption of narcotics
to the production of arms, and from the recycling of
illegal money to speculation on the stock markets, as
occurred prior to 9/11.

Loretta Napoleoni is the first author
to tackle the issues raised by September 11th 2001 from
a specifically economic perspective. Presenting an astonishing
array of evidence, taken from the extensive research
and interviews, her book is a fascinating account of
controversial issues of life at the heart of many of
today's international problems. Revealing how the "new
economy of terror" has evolved by proxy through
various wars -- from the Cold War to Al Qaeda --Napoleoni
argues that today's Islamic terror groups are driven
by real economic forces in the Muslim world. They are
the same forces that have been hindered in the last
century by the economic interests of both the West and
it allies, the oligarchic powers of the Middle East.

The Forum for Stable Currencies
has been hosting debates between analysts of monetary
reform, victims of banks and institutions and promoters
of LETS and Barter Companies since 1998. Programmes
have been distributed to both Houses of Parliament in
the hope that the topics debated become part of the
political agenda, especially as the EURO challenges
the sovereignty to issue a national currency.
The Forum operates from the following principles:
* The parliamentary process needs to make certain that
the Money Supply ensures its value" Lord Caithness
* Money should be the servant not the master of humanity.
* Banksâ ability to create money out of nothing
must be curtailed.
* Personal responsibility needs to be maximised.
When it is compounding interest upon interest, growth
is exponential; for profits and for debts. Any exponential
growth is unnatural and unsustainable. 97% of money
in circulation is created as interest-bearing debt.
Since 1967, notes and coin (M0), the share of the total
money supply (M4) issued by governments free of interest
has gone down from 31% to 3%, i.e. Virtually all money
is created by banks with a near monopoly. Organiser: Sabine McNeill, tel. 020
7328 3701, 21 Goldhurst Terrace London NW 6 3HB www.intraforum.net/money
sabine@globalnet.co.uk

We are
inviting publishers and booksellers to display and sell
books related to economic justice at an Open Day from
11am, with the CCMJ AGM to follow at 3.30pm. We will
also LAUNCH a stirring new book brimming with anecdotal
accounts of the deep effect of monetary injustice on
our lives. Christchurch is the HQ of the South London
Industrial Mission) and is close to both Blackfriars
and Southwark

Rev Peter Challen writes
Dear Friend,
This week's Church Times (October 3rd 2003) has a Leader
Commentary on 'Forgive us our debts' [in response to
an article by Antonia Swinson in the same edition (p15)],
and which includes the sentence 'Debt is the church's
business, on pastoral grounds alone', and ends with
the words 'A prophetic Church will focus on the victims
of reality'. It is an interesting coincidence, as I
was about to send you the invitation below. I hope that
you might wish to take up the invitation or to pass
it to specific persons who you think might like to attend
this event.

The Christian Council for Monetary
Justice asks you to consider this invitation. CCMJ is
taking an initiative to advance the readership in economic
justice, and the knowledge of incremental steps towards
peace and inclusive justice, especially where there
is Christian resonance in the writing. We are inviting
publishers and booksellers to display and sell books/journals
related to economic justice, and in particular to monetary
justice.

We would like to promote such new books
as : Jonathan Bartley's - Subversive Manifesto -
lifting the Lid on God's political Agenda, BRF
2003, Antonia Swinson's Root of All Evil? - how
to make spiritual values count - St Andrew's Press
2003, Kamran Mofid's - globalisation for the common
good 2000, and older works like Peter Selby's -
Grace and Mortgage: what it means to be in Christ
today - Credit Action's - range of popular
writings - David Jenkins' - Market Whys and
Human Wherefores: thinking again about Markets, Politics
and People -Cassell 2000, Keith Tondeur's What
Jesus Said about Money and many more that may well
appear in Christian Bookshops.

BUT we would also like to bring to
you attention many books written by Christians in their
professional capacities, whose significant work does
not normally appear in Christian Bookshops such as :-
James Robertson's Creating New Money, Michael
Rowbotham's The Grip of Death, John Tomlinson's
Honest Money, Rodney Shakespeare and Peter
Challen's Seven Steps to Justice - NEP 2002,
James Gibb Stuart's The Money Bomb, Michael
Hudson's The Lost Tradition of Biblical Debt Cancellations,
The Dundee report - Wealth;: a Christian View,
Margrit Kennedy's 'Interest and Inflation-Free
Money - Creating an exchange medium that works
for everybody and protects the earth'

Burdens of debt at personal, corporate,
national and international levels and the disregard
of biblical teaching on usury are conspiring to create
immense social disease. This is an initiative to tackle
those issues among Christian readers. This Open Day
might even raise up a commitment to hold, say, a Faith
and Just Economics Week in Christian Bookshops, in 2004.
I would be grateful to hear you response to this invitation
and to answer any questions you may have. Yours sincerely,
Canon Peter Challen, Chair, Christian Council for Monetary
Justice

Speakers:
MICHAEL MEACHER MP, Minister of State for the Environment
97-03 - NATURAL GOVERNANCE
ANN PETTIFOR, Director at the New Economics Foundation
- REAL WORLD ECONOMICS
PETER RUSSELL, Cosmologist and Author - THE SCIENCE
OF UNDERSTANDING

Theme: In the last couple
of years we have seen global conflict scale up to truly
dangerous levels. It is as though the interests of a
small group of countries and companies take priority
over the concerns of the rest of humanity. Unprecedented
military technology is being used to assert political
and economic power. Whilst it is desirable for tyrants
to be removed, there is growing concern about the legitimacy
of preventative warfare. It is time that human scale
development became incorporated into a new diverse world
view. Drawing on the thought of E.F. Schumacher we are
helping to develop positive solutions. This year's Bristol
Schumacher Lectures coincide with the 30th Anniversary
of the publication of Small is Beautiful and the 25th
Anniversary of the founding of Schumacher UK. Our three
speakers will echo some of Schumacher's thinking while
presenting their own unique ideas and experience. We
look forward to a stimulating and thought provoking
day of Lectures and debate. Please join us for a very
stimulating day.

The Rt Hon Michael Meacher MP - Minister of
State for the Environment 97-03
Michael Meacher was Minister of State for the Environment
from May 1997 until he was replaced in the cabinet reshuffle
of June this year. Many people think it was because
of his increasing concerns over genetically modified
food. He became a Labour MP in 1970 and since then his
varied political appointments have included Chief Opposition
Spokesman on Health and Social Security (83-87, 89-92),
on Employment (87-89, 95-96) on Overseas
Development (92-93), on Public Service and Citizen's
Rights (93-94), on Transport (94-95) and on Environmental
Protection (96-97). Currently he is a member of the
Environmental Audit Committee. His many political interests
include environmental protection, sustainable development
and the reform of the machinery of government. In 1992
his book Diffusing Power: The Key to Socialist Revival
was published.

Ann Pettifor - Director at the New Economics
FoundationAnn Pettifor is editor of a new annual publication
- Real World Economic Outlook (RWEO) - first published
in Sept 2003 by Palgrave Macmillan. The mission of this
radical survey of the global economy is to promote easy-to
understand economics, and to give consumers a real understanding
of the frightening legacy of globalisation: debt-deflation.
RWEO will also give activists the confidence, the data,
and the analyses needed to challenge the orthodoxies
of their governments, the IMF, and mainstream economists.
In 1996 Ms Pettifor co-founded the Jubilee 2000 movement
for the cancellation of the debts of the poorest countries.
In 1998 she led a protest of more than 70,000 in Birmingham,
at the G8 Summit. Jubilee 2000 mobilized the first-ever
global petition of 24 million signatures and persuaded
G8 leaders to cancel $100bn of debt - $36bn of which
is now written off.

Peter Russell - Cosmologist and AuthorPeter Russell studied
mathematics and theoretical physics at the University
of Cambridge. Then, as he became increasingly fascinated
by the nature of consciousness, he moved into experimental
psychology. He then went to
India, studied meditation and Eastern philosophy, and
on his return took up research into the psychophysiology
of meditation at Bristol University. He was one of the
first people to introduce human potential seminars into
the corporate field, and for twenty years worked with
major corporations on creativity, learning methods,
stress management and personal development. His principal
interest is the inner challenges of the times we are
passing
through. He has written ten books in this area, including
The Awakening Earth, The White Hole in Time, and most
recently, From Science to God: A Physicist's Journey
into the Mystery of Consciousness.

As the WTO meeting
in Cancun draws to a close, the need to create a culture
of thinking inclusively about economic life sounds
with ever greater clarity. The alternative is a strident
factionalism in which self-assertion rules, the evidence
for this is not to be found in human nature alone,
but rather in the concepts used to describe our economic
world conception. But what if we can think and talk
in a way which allows us to conceive a humane world
? Economists, politicians, journalists, protestors,
corporate lobbyists might discover a common language
afterall. We invite you to a series of Thursday evening
events that aim to explore contemporary economic issues
within the context of a brief introduction leading
to open conversation. If you would like to display
this programme on a notice board you can download
it at - http://www.talkingeconomics.co.uk/poster.doc
- I look forward to your participation, Arthur Edwards
-

The Visible Hand Growing beyond the Enlightenment:
- Modern economic
life is permeated by assumptions about the earthly-only
nature of the human being. ‘Unable to act nobly,
we need the invisible hand of an omnipresent but invisible
god.’ So said Adam Smith … until close
to his death, that is! Now, 250 years later, what
can we say about this ‘invisible hand’
and its economic consequences. Has the time come to
make the hand visible?

These
events are organised by members of the Associative
Economics Network, established in 1998 to encourage
the development of an associative approach to modern
economic life. Membership of the Network is open to
all and entails no obligations. The annual fee of
£10 includes bi-monthly issues of e2 - Journal
of Associative Economics. Associative Economics is
a non-partisan approach to the wide and divergent
range of thought currently informing modern debates
- from neo-liberal to ‘alternative’, and
including the ideas of Rudolf Steiner. If
you would like to join, please register online at
www.ae-institute.com. or send your name and address
together with £10 to Centre for Associative
Economics, PO Box 341, Canterbury CT4 8GA.

An
inspirational event with speakers, workshops, and
hundreds of students tackling the biggest issues in
the world including Fairtrade, climate change, HIV/AIDS,
world trade...Come together with hundreds of others
to inform yourself, share ideas, learn new skills
and find out what action you can take to build a fair,
sustainable and shared planet. “I have come
away with so much ...totally inspired me!” student,
2002.

Workshops:
The biggest & most diverse workshop programme
of any UK student conference. Choose from 50+ dynamic
workshops on essential campaigning skills and issues
of global significance. From starting an action group
to using the media; from human rights in Burma to
GM food. With workshops to suit all levels of knowledge
run by global campaigning organisations, student campaigners,
grassroots networks, ethical companies and co-ops.

Booking:
will be taken online in September. Call 01865 245678
for further information. Cost just £15! Your
ticket includes: both days of the conference, basic
crashpad accommodation and the Saturday night party.
The ticket price includes “crashpad” accommodation
on Friday & Saturday night – you will need
to bring a sleeping bag and camping mat – sorry,
we can’t provide these!

We hope you'll join us (and the
world will live as one)
“Amazing... a huge variety of issues covered
in an accessible way…I am so inspired I just
can't thank you enough.” student, 2002

Unique Features:
Creative Spaces: The Centre for Sustainable
Design are working with five highly creative
individuals to add a unique 'out of the box' element
to the conference. Creative Spaces will provide delegates
with new perspectives and experiences, whilst providing
a platform to generate high quality, innovative ideas.

(nobleandsilver) - Comedians and Video Producers
- UK
* Will launch two short videos to highlight key sustainability
challenges with a range of examples of
'sustainable solutions' * Will showcase their award-winning
and highly entertaining mult-media experience

Niels Peter Flint - Concept Designer - Denmark
* Will direct two unique 'experiences' designed to enable
delegate's to think differently about sustainability
* Processes used act as catalysts to stimulate new thinking
and viewpointsDavid Walker & Rob Holdway - Directors
- Giraffe Innovation, UK
* Will direct five workshops aimed at creating innovative
sustainable products and services concepts
* The workshops will focus on five areas and will be
led by experienced industry practioners
- home - food - mobility - information and communications
technologies - clothing
* Central to the session will be the use of Giraffe's
unique Eco-Cubes process
* Awards will be given to winning ideas

Speakers:
MICHAEL MEACHER MP, Minister of State for the Environment
97-03 - NATURAL GOVERNANCE
ANN PETTIFOR, Director at the New Economics Foundation
- REAL WORLD ECONOMICS
PETER RUSSELL, Cosmologist and Author - THE SCIENCE
OF UNDERSTANDING

Theme: In the last couple
of years we have seen global conflict scale up to truly
dangerous levels. It is as though the interests of a
small group of countries and companies take priority
over the concerns of the rest of humanity. Unprecedented
military technology is being used to assert political
and economic power. Whilst it is desirable for tyrants
to be removed, there is growing concern about the legitimacy
of preventative warfare. It is time that human scale
development became incorporated into a new diverse world
view. Drawing on the thought of E.F. Schumacher we are
helping to develop positive solutions. This year's Bristol
Schumacher Lectures coincide with the 30th Anniversary
of the publication of Small is Beautiful and the 25th
Anniversary of the founding of Schumacher UK. Our three
speakers will echo some of Schumacher's thinking while
presenting their own unique ideas and experience. We
look forward to a stimulating and thought provoking
day of Lectures and debate. Please join us for a very
stimulating day.

The Rt Hon Michael Meacher MP - Minister of
State for the Environment 97-03
Michael Meacher was Minister of State for the Environment
from May 1997 until he was replaced in the cabinet reshuffle
of June this year. Many people think it was because
of his increasing concerns over genetically modified
food. He became a Labour MP in 1970 and since then his
varied political appointments have included Chief Opposition
Spokesman on Health and Social Security (83-87, 89-92),
on Employment (87-89, 95-96) on Overseas
Development (92-93), on Public Service and Citizen's
Rights (93-94), on Transport (94-95) and on Environmental
Protection (96-97). Currently he is a member of the
Environmental Audit Committee. His many political interests
include environmental protection, sustainable development
and the reform of the machinery of government. In 1992
his book Diffusing Power: The Key to Socialist Revival
was published.

Ann Pettifor - Director at the New Economics
FoundationAnn Pettifor is editor of a new annual publication
- Real World Economic Outlook (RWEO) - first published
in Sept 2003 by Palgrave Macmillan. The mission of this
radical survey of the global economy is to promote easy-to
understand economics, and to give consumers a real understanding
of the frightening legacy of globalisation: debt-deflation.
RWEO will also give activists the confidence, the data,
and the analyses needed to challenge the orthodoxies
of their governments, the IMF, and mainstream economists.
In 1996 Ms Pettifor co-founded the Jubilee 2000 movement
for the cancellation of the debts of the poorest countries.
In 1998 she led a protest of more than 70,000 in Birmingham,
at the G8 Summit. Jubilee 2000 mobilized the first-ever
global petition of 24 million signatures and persuaded
G8 leaders to cancel $100bn of debt - $36bn of which
is now written off.

Peter Russell - Cosmologist and AuthorPeter Russell studied
mathematics and theoretical physics at the University
of Cambridge. Then, as he became increasingly fascinated
by the nature of consciousness, he moved into experimental
psychology. He then went to
India, studied meditation and Eastern philosophy, and
on his return took up research into the psychophysiology
of meditation at Bristol University. He was one of the
first people to introduce human potential seminars into
the corporate field, and for twenty years worked with
major corporations on creativity, learning methods,
stress management and personal development. His principal
interest is the inner challenges of the times we are
passing
through. He has written ten books in this area, including
The Awakening Earth, The White Hole in Time, and most
recently, From Science to God: A Physicist's Journey
into the Mystery of Consciousness.

Booking is essential.
The event is £5 for community groups and £12
for others, payable on the day, and includes a vegetarian
lunch and refreshments. The
AGM is free. To register, please send your name, organisation
and contact details and the question you would like
the Panel to address during Question Time

PROGRAMME10am: Visit of the Spitalfields' City
Farm -two forty-minutes guided tours of the Spitalfields
City Farm project will take place: 10 am - for London
21 members and users attending the AGM11am - for those who only wish to attend
the Conference In addition to its urban farm, the project
includes a multicultural horticultural project, a Young
Farmerâs Club, Rubbish Revolution, and a training
programme for the community. Spitalfields Farm is five
minutes walk from the location of the Conference, and
just to the right (East) of Shoreditch Station on the
MAP

10.45 - Registration of London 21 members
and users11.00 - London 21's Fourth AGM11.45 - Registration of non-members
/ Tea and coffee12.00 - Question Time on Progress towards
Community-based Sustainability in London - A Panel will
answer questions submitted in writing and in advance.--1.30 - Lunch and displays --2.15 - Carrousel presenting each
workshop topic and London Sustainability Week--3.30 - Workshops: -
Environmental Justice, Sustainability & Local Strategic
Partnerships, Mapping Community Action for Sustainability,
Borough-wide Sustainability Networks--4.45 - Plenary--5.15 - Close and networking drinksLondon 21 promotes,
supports and networks community action for sustainability
in Greater London

This year
sees the launch of the Working for World Change course
at Braziers Park. It follows on from a successful and
productive 6 month INTERNS programme which ran here
from October 02 to April 03. The internationally recognised
Permaculture Design Course forms the core of the programme,
set in the context of our latest thinking around: •
thinking and multiple intelligences • learning
styles, action learning approaches and learning communities
• re-evaluation counselling, transition design
and direct action • micro-democracies, leaderful
and supportful societies, designing productive meetings
and events, governance and decision making. There will
be a feast of edge events including group Alexander
Technique sessions, Spiral Dynamics explorations, singing
and dancing, theatre in World Change, practical gardening
and more.

Is this for you? The programme is designed
principally with three groups of people in mind. We
will provide an opportunity to refocus for anyone going
through a period of transition or taking their first
steps in to the world change movement. We also see the
course as a valuable training in professional development
for those who are already working in NGOs, local government
and social enterprises. The internship may be more suitable
for younger people seeking an apprenticeship or progression
from conventional education.

Progression routes: Our approach is
to provide people with a creative mix of practical knowledge
and skills which can be developed without limits through
true lifelong learning. Active progression routes are
in place for Permaculture and for Re-Evaluation Counselling.

World Change philosophy:
Our philosophy of world change assumes success through
persistent and courageous application of thoughtful
strategies arising from accurate observation of current
realities (no quick fixes).

Staff: Principal tutor,
Andy Langford MSc, DMS, DipPermDes, has been working
for world change since 1977 using both academic and
practical action learning pathways. He is a well known
permaculture teacher and group facilitator. He will
be supported by Jessie Marcham and other members of
the Braziers community. There will also be a sparkling
array of guest tutors in attendance.

Dates and Fees: Six
residential 3 day weekends October 03 to April 04 and
a full residential week in January 04 give us the time
and space for a blend of relaxed intensity. First weekend,
23rd to 26th October is an introduction and a taster.
Buy this for an introductory rate of £150 (normally
£185). Full fees £1400 with flexible payment
methods, day learner rates and work exchanges possible.
One-off weekends also available. Please ask for details.

Internship option:
For people with full time availability we are offering
live-in internships for 6 months @ £800 including
full attendance on course weekends. Board and lodging
is exchanged for (per week) 4 days work in the College
and grounds and 1 day spent on mutually inspired project
work. Braziers is a living experiment in integrative
social research and interns are invited to be active
participants in this work.

Brochure: A brochure
for the course can be found at www.braziers.org.uk.
Paper copies are also available on request.

Contacts: For general
information about Braziers Park, and to see the introductory
brochure, visit www.braziers.org.uk
You can phone us on: 01491 680221 (office phone with
answer machine) 01491 680481 (residents’ phone)
You can email us on: admin@braziers.org.uk or jessiemarcham@hotmail.com/
You can write to us at: Braziers Park, Ipsden, Wallingford,
OX10 6AN. We look forward to
hearing from you! Please forward this email, pin it
on your notice boards and spread the word…

Today,
the necessity of repaying interest-bearing debt has
come to dominate the daily affairs of rich and poor
societies alike. Many nations face a combination of
debt and monetary crises from which, at best, only temporary
respite is available. The emergence of Islamic banking
and finance has therefore been heralded in some quarters
as an exciting new means of competing with interest-based
practices throughout the world. Its proponents insist
that this nascent industry genuinely reflects both the
Islamic prohibition upon usury (the practice of taking
interest for lending money ) and the wider requirements
of Islamic commercial law. Others see it as a dangerous
force for compromise, one that will in due course lead
to the abandonment of the usury prohibition in the Muslim
world. Is Islamic banking and finance any different
to conventional banking and finance ? And what does
Islam have to offer the world of monetary reform ? At
this session of the Forum for Stable Currencies, three
speakers from a diverse range of Muslim opinions provide
their answers on topics from money creation to Islamic
mortgages.

Waheed Qaiser is an
accomplished Islamic Banker and management professional.
He is credited with providing Islamic mortgages to the
Muslims and to other communities in the West. He has
held responsible positions in CitiBank NA, Islamic Investment
Banking Unit, USB AG and HSBC Republic. Mr Qaiser is
currently supporting various other organisations to
promote the cause for of Islamic Banking globally.

Tarek El Diwany currently
runs his own company for business research and software
development. After studying accounting and finance,
he became a derivatives dealer and private financial
market consultant, before he was Head of Islamic Finance
at one of the largest international broking companies
in the City.

Gohar Bilal is a structured
finance professional with a focus on Islamic finance.
She is the European representative of Harvard Islamic
Finance Information Program and a Visiting Scholar of
the Harvard Law Schoolâs Islamic Legal Studies
Program. Her articles on Islamic Mortgages have appeared
in Mortgage Finance Gazette.

The Forum for Stable Currencies
has been hosting debates between analysts of monetary
reform, victims of banks and institutions and promoters
of LETS and Barter Companies since 1998. Programmes
have been distributed to both Houses of Parliament in
the hope that the topics debated become part of the
political agenda, especially as the EURO challenges
the sovereignty to issue a national currency.
The Forum operates from the following principles:
* The parliamentary process needs to make certain that
the Money Supply ensures its value" Lord Caithness
* Money should be the servant not the master of humanity.
* Banksâ ability to create money out of nothing
must be curtailed.
* Personal responsibility needs to be maximised.
When it is compounding interest upon interest, growth
is exponential; for profits and for debts. Any exponential
growth is unnatural and unsustainable. 97% of money
in circulation is created as interest-bearing debt.
Since 1967, notes and coin (M0), the share of the total
money supply (M4) issued by governments free of interest
has gone down from 31% to 3%, i.e. Virtually all money
is created by banks with a near monopoly. Organiser: Sabine McNeill, tel. 020
7328 3701, 21 Goldhurst Terrace London NW 6 3HB www.intraforum.net/money
sabine@globalnet.co.uk

Glasgow,
Bristol, London, Kendal, Manchester, Darlington, Sheffield
and Birmingham. "When rich countries or the World
Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) say a country
is getting debt relief, they don't tell you all the
strings they attach. After decades in Africa, after
all the failures, they are still pushing for the same
policies, and they are discredited world-wide."
Demba Dembele, Senegal. Dembele, director of the Forum
for African Alternatives, Senegal, will expose the culprits
behind the deadly economic conditions attached to debt
relief. Hear the evidence, decide, take action.

Glasgow,
Bristol, London, Kendal, Manchester, Darlington, Sheffield
and Birmingham. "When rich countries or the World
Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) say a country
is getting debt relief, they don't tell you all the
strings they attach. After decades in Africa, after
all the failures, they are still pushing for the same
policies, and they are discredited world-wide."
Demba Dembele, Senegal. Dembele, director of the Forum
for African Alternatives, Senegal, will expose the culprits
behind the deadly economic conditions attached to debt
relief. Hear the evidence, decide, take action.

Glasgow,
Bristol, London, Kendal, Manchester, Darlington, Sheffield
and Birmingham. "When rich countries or the World
Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) say a country
is getting debt relief, they don't tell you all the
strings they attach. After decades in Africa, after
all the failures, they are still pushing for the same
policies, and they are discredited world-wide."
Demba Dembele, Senegal. Dembele, director of the Forum
for African Alternatives, Senegal, will expose the culprits
behind the deadly economic conditions attached to debt
relief. Hear the evidence, decide, take action.

Glasgow,
Bristol, London, Kendal, Manchester, Darlington, Sheffield
and Birmingham. "When rich countries or the World
Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) say a country
is getting debt relief, they don't tell you all the
strings they attach. After decades in Africa, after
all the failures, they are still pushing for the same
policies, and they are discredited world-wide."
Demba Dembele, Senegal. Dembele, director of the Forum
for African Alternatives, Senegal, will expose the culprits
behind the deadly economic conditions attached to debt
relief. Hear the evidence, decide, take action.

Glasgow,
Bristol, London, Kendal, Manchester, Darlington, Sheffield
and Birmingham. "When rich countries or the World
Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) say a country
is getting debt relief, they don't tell you all the
strings they attach. After decades in Africa, after
all the failures, they are still pushing for the same
policies, and they are discredited world-wide."
Demba Dembele, Senegal. Dembele, director of the Forum
for African Alternatives, Senegal, will expose the culprits
behind the deadly economic conditions attached to debt
relief. Hear the evidence, decide, take action.

Glasgow,
Bristol, London, Kendal, Manchester, Darlington, Sheffield
and Birmingham. "When rich countries or the World
Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) say a country
is getting debt relief, they don't tell you all the
strings they attach. After decades in Africa, after
all the failures, they are still pushing for the same
policies, and they are discredited world-wide."
Demba Dembele, Senegal. Dembele, director of the Forum
for African Alternatives, Senegal, will expose the culprits
behind the deadly economic conditions attached to debt
relief. Hear the evidence, decide, take action.

Glasgow,
Bristol, London, Kendal, Manchester, Darlington, Sheffield
and Birmingham. "When rich countries or the World
Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) say a country
is getting debt relief, they don't tell you all the
strings they attach. After decades in Africa, after
all the failures, they are still pushing for the same
policies, and they are discredited world-wide."
Demba Dembele, Senegal. Dembele, director of the Forum
for African Alternatives, Senegal, will expose the culprits
behind the deadly economic conditions attached to debt
relief. Hear the evidence, decide, take action.

Glasgow,
Bristol, London, Kendal, Manchester, Darlington, Sheffield
and Birmingham. "When rich countries or the World
Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) say a country
is getting debt relief, they don't tell you all the
strings they attach. After decades in Africa, after
all the failures, they are still pushing for the same
policies, and they are discredited world-wide."
Demba Dembele, Senegal. Dembele, director of the Forum
for African Alternatives, Senegal, will expose the culprits
behind the deadly economic conditions attached to debt
relief. Hear the evidence, decide, take action.

NO NEW
OIL - OIL, WAR AND CLIMATE CHANGE: DISMANTLING THE OIL
ECONOMY - LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS. SATURDAY 11TH
OCTOBERFollowing the invasion of Iraq
and an unprecedented heat wave in Europe, this gathering
will expose the connections between oil, war, and climate
change. It brings together experienced campaigners from
across the environmental, peace and social justice movements
to share strategies and develop proposals for new campaigns.
The day will combine presentations, workshops, slides,
slides and specially commissioned video.

MORNING PRESENTATIONS - A series
of short presentations accompanied by specially commissioned
videos.

THE MAIN PLAYERS AND THE NEW OIL FRONTIER
James Marriott and Greg Muttitt from Platform UK present
a multi-media tour of the main companies, where they
are operating and where they are expanding- and an overview
of how this relates to conflict zones and countries
with repressive regimes.

EXPOSING THE ROLE OF OIL IN THE WAR
IN IRAQ
Steve Kretzmann of Sustainable Energy and Economy Network
explores the links between oil companies, the Bush administration
and the war in Iraq. He looks ahead at the frontier
for new oil and the potential for new conflicts.

FINANCING NEW OIL
Nicholas Hildyard of The Corner House exposes the sources
of private and public investment in new oil development,
with a particular focus on export credit agencies and
the multi-lateral finance institutions.

THE LINKS BETWEEN EXXON, RIGHT WING
THINK TANKS, CLIMATE SKEPTICS AND THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION
Cindy Baxter, coordinator of the Stop Esso Coalition,
reveals a complex web of influence, patronage and corruption.

TEN YEARS OF RESISTANCE TO NEW OIL
- WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?
Andy Rowell, researcher, journalist and author, evaluates
the ten years of oil campaigns since the execution of
Ken Saro Wiwa; the successes and the lost opportunities.

CLIMATE CHANGE- THE WEAPON OF MASS
DESTRUCTION
George Marshall from Rising Tide presents the case for
regarding climate change as a new tool for oppression
and examines the climate implications of exploiting
the remaining undeveloped oil resources.

LUNCH BREAK AND OPEN FORUM
During the lunch break, the Open Forum is a chance to
meet campaigners from environment, development and peace
groups, and find out more about their work.

AFTERNOON WORKSHOPS - People can attend two of the following
workshops as all workshops will be repeated:

Dismantling the oil industry - looking
at the web of oil industries from a UK perspective,
discussing the social justice issues of dismantling
the industry, and identifying campaign opportunities
and targets.

Causes and impacts of climate change
- author and journalist Mark Lynas personal experiences
and slides of the impacts of climate change around the
world.

Baku-Ceyhan Campaign - the BP pipeline
through Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey is a case study
in the environmental and social impacts of large oil
and gas projects. The resistance to public funding for
the pipeline has encouraged one of the largest oil campaigns
seen in the UK...and it needs your support.

Campaigning Against New Oil - A panel
of campaigners draws together the strands of the last
decade of campaigning on oil, climate change and fossil
fuel frontiers. What lessons have we learnt? How can
we take this forward?

Resistance and Solidarity - A presentation
of case studies from around the world where oil has
been a catalyst for conflict including Colombia, West
Papua, Nigeria, Chad/Cameroon, Baku-Ceyhan and Tibet.
The panel discussion asks how we can show solidarity
and effectively support struggles from the UK?

FINAL PLENARY- PROPOSALS FOR NEW CAMPAIGNS
The final session brings together the discussions from
the workshops, contains short presentations on campaigns
and activities and invites people to support the growing
movement against the expansion of oil and gas production.

BOOKING DETAILS
The gathering runs from 10.30 am-6pm at the London School
of Economics, Clement
House, D Building, Aldwych, London. Nearest tubes: Holborn,
Temple. The full agenda of speakers and workshops will
be posted on the RIsing Tide website www.risingtide.org.uk.

We are expecting to fully fill the
venue, so please register your name now to avoid disappointment
by writing to info@risingtide.org.uk or call the Rising
Tide Oxford office on 01865 241 097. There is no attendance
fee and we are only asking for a small donation on the
door to cover costs.

The conference is being organised by:LSE People and Planet su.soc.peopleandplanet@lse.ac.uk.
www.peopleandplanet.org

Rising Tide UK. A national network
of small groups and individuals dedicated to taking
local action on climate change and building a movement
against climate change. Our short monthly news sheet
carried information, events, and news from the UK climate
change movement. To subscribe send a blank e-mail to:
news-subscribe@risingtide.org.uk Your details will never
be passed to anyone else.

As the WTO meeting
in Cancun draws to a close, the need to create a culture
of thinking inclusively about economic life sounds
with ever greater clarity. The alternative is a strident
factionalism in which self-assertion rules, the evidence
for this is not to be found in human nature alone,
but rather in the concepts used to describe our economic
world conception. But what if we can think and talk
in a way which allows us to conceive a humane world
? Economists, politicians, journalists, protestors,
corporate lobbyists might discover a common language
afterall. We invite you to a series of Thursday evening
events that aim to explore contemporary economic issues
within the context of a brief introduction leading
to open conversation. If you would like to display
this programme on a notice board you can download
it at - http://www.talkingeconomics.co.uk/poster.doc
- I look forward to your participation, Arthur Edwards
-

Does World Money need World Governance? The
response of many to the globalisation of economic
life is to globalise political life also. But does
the melting together of national economies require
a world polity? Or should we not distinguish between
economic and political sovereignty, maintaining the
latter on a national basis and reserving it to governments?
The corollary would be to make the institutions of
economic life more genuinely accountable than they
are to date.

These
events are organised by members of the Associative
Economics Network, established in 1998 to encourage
the development of an associative approach to modern
economic life. Membership of the Network is open to
all and entails no obligations. The annual fee of
£10 includes bi-monthly issues of e2 - Journal
of Associative Economics. Associative Economics is
a non-partisan approach to the wide and divergent
range of thought currently informing modern debates
- from neo-liberal to ‘alternative’, and
including the ideas of Rudolf Steiner. If
you would like to join, please register online at
www.ae-institute.com. or send your name and address
together with £10 to Centre for Associative
Economics, PO Box 341, Canterbury CT4 8GA.

London
is a global city - a target for companies worldwide
which seek to profit from public services, the home
of banks and multinational companies which plunder the
world,a refuge for people displaced by those attacks,
and a centre of multi-cultural resistance against oppression.
In a period when politicians have abandoned our lives
to market forces and war, people are trying to find
real solutions to our problems. Yet such efforts remain
fragmented across issues, while strategic debate is
often reducd to sloganising and cheerleading. To
create a new world requires different ways
of linking our needs and aspirations. There is a worldwide
democratic ferment generating new organsiational forms
- sometimes called 'social forums' based on solidarity,
inclusion, horizontality, participation and conviviality.
The First London Social Forum aims to provide a space
for reflective debate on strategies for creating another
London and another world. Themes include: Media; Transport;
War, peace and civil liberties; London as a global city;
Refugees and racism; Public services - fighting privatisation
and developig alternatives.

Announcing The Second Spirit
Matters Day: 21st Century DemocracyIs democracy failing
us? Have we ever really had democracy - and are there
opportunities now for creating it, or for taking it
further? Can democracy tame the big global organizations
which currently escape democratic control, like the
multi-national companies and the International Monetary
Fund? Can democracy go beyond the rule of political
parties to become a democracy for citizens as a whole?
How should democratic systems take account of the sustainability
of our long-term future, and of other species?Join us for a vibrant, intelligent,
interesting and fulfilling day: Roy Madron, co-author
(with John Jopling) of Gaian Democracies will talk with
Victor Anderson about new approaches to local and global
democracy, followed by small group discussions, music
with David Lasserson, dance with Plaxy O'Keefe, meditation
and Qi Gong with Barbara Brown. Our aim is that the
event will lead to the creation of new alternative local
groups through which we can infuse the political process
with the values, goals and truths of the human spirit:
joy, friendship, creativity, compassion and a sense
of belonging.

Spirit Matters
is a self-organising, independent network of men and
women of a variety of ages, faiths, cultures and political
orientations, who believe that the introduction of spiritual
values to our personal and public lives is essential
if we are to solve the problems of war, poverty, alienation,
and environmental destruction that face us in the 21st
century.
'Spirit Matters Days' are a new initiative
to bring together people who want to connect with their
own spirituality and to transform their own lives in
order to rekindle creative political participation in
shaping our society as active citizens. Through working
together, whether in harmony and joy, supporting and
nurturing one another, or in passionate but constructive
conflict, challenging one another to live our highest
values, the people involved in Spirit Matters hope to
help one another to bring personal dreams of fulfilment
and collective political dreams of sustainable living
to fruition.

1:30- 1:40 Welcome Back
1:40 - 2:00 - Qi Gong with Barbara Brown
2:00- 3:00 - Small group discussions on purpose and
principles. What is the purpose of Spirit Matters and
other similar groups and what are the principles that
guide us?
3:00 - 3: 45 - Large group plenary, bringing the small
group talks and conclusions back to the centre3: 45 - 4:00 coffee/
tea break

4:00- 5:00 - Further small group
discussions to consider ideas for new projects, founding
new groups or networking within existing ones.5:00 -5:30- Large group plenary,
bringing the small group conclusions back to the centre5:30 - 5:50 - Dances with Plaxy
O'Keefe5:50- 6:00 Group meditation/
final wordsFurther information from:Spirit Matters,
C/O 27 Lonsdale Road, London NW6 6RA,
Tel: 0207-624-1123 Fax: 0207-624-1124,
Email: spiritmatters@hotmail.com Website: www.spiritmatters.info

The
aim of the event, an Australian initiative,
is to bring together people thinking about and working
towards local and global reconciliation in order to
establish an ongoing framework that allows us to share
experiences and to work together. The topics addressed
will include: the concepts of 'reconciliation' and 'civil
society'; political action, reconciliation and the roles
of local and global politics; the problem of terrorism
and cultural, political and religious responses to it;
and issues of culture, citizenship and democracy. The
format will include both lectures and interactive workshops,
with ample opportunity for contributions from all the
participants. An intended outcome of the meeting is
a charter to facilitate ongoing co-operation among groups
around the world working for reconciliation.

The conference will be opened byMary Robinson (Former Irish President
and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, now of the
Global Ethics Initiative), and has a unique range of
speakers from across disciplines, cultures and community
organisations around the world. Individuals, community
groups and organisations around the world with an interest
in issues associated with reconciliation are participating.
Join renowned academic thinkers, social activists and
policy makers to identify the obstacles to reconciliation
and share ways to build community.

Speakers will include:Jakob Finci: Chair, National Coordinating
Committee for the Establishment of the Truth and Reconciliation
Commission in Bosnia Herzegovina.Charles Villa-Vincencio: Executive
Director Institute for Justice and Reconciliation, South
Africa, Former National Research Director, South African
Truth and Reconciliation Commission.Tanya Hosch, Director, Australian Indigenous
Leadership Centre.Hans D'Orville: Director Strategic
Policy, UNESCO, Paris.

The conference will also
launch a Global Reconciliation
Network to promote cooperation amongst community
based groups around the world. A communiqué for
the network will be released at a closing press conference
on 21st September (International day of Peace).

PROVISIONAL
PROGRAMME: Speakers: Rosalie Huzzard – WILPF, Ellen
Diederich. Oberhausen. International Womens’ Peace
Archive, Fasia Jansen. friedensa@aol.com, Karen Andrews
US Military wife, from inside the Greenham Base now student
of Peace and Justice at Wellesley College. USA. Also UK
Soldier, ex Falklands/Greenham airbase, will read his
peace poetry - contact via Barbara R.
Celebratory cake with maps of Malta and Wales made by
Pembroke WI. Videos: "Greenham the making of a monument"
– Undercurrents. Oxford. German Womens’ Greenham
Vide., Welsh poetry an englyn by Vernon Jones . Acappella
Singers 2.00pm
Another womens’ sculpture story – www.undelete.org/woa/woa09-25.html
Large marble sculptures of three women suffragists languish
in the basement of the US Capital Building for 75 years
– 1921 -1997. Sculptures made by women, of women
installed by women. An even more difficult and dramatic
story than the Greenham story. Life size Greenham Sculpture
by Anton Agius of Rabat Malta made for the cause of Peace,
a sculpture made with love as much as money.

Most
commentators regard culture as a side-show, an event
in the margins with little if any real economic significance.
But what if culture were shown to be the source of new
values and fresh energy, and thus of future economic
life? What if modern speculation and the anarchy of
the financial markets pointed to an unrecognised phenomenon
- the ability today to fund culture on a massive scale?
Could we tame the markets by investing in culture?

Tuesday 24th June
2003, 7pm

MONEY DEBT and the
OUTDATED EURO

MIKE ROWBOTHAM author
of "'GRIP OF DEATH" and SIR RICHARD BODY, former
MP

House of Lords,
Westminster, London W1. Committee Room 3 St Stephen's
entrance: Booked in the name of Lord Stoddart of Swindon:
Free

How the current financial
system functions as debt, and why the Euro is already
out of date; yesterday's solution to yesterday's problem.
Why is joining the EURO deemed to be irreversible ?
Why does the EURO gain such wholehearted support from
the banks? Modern financial systems are based on almost
entirely on debt and banking. The deficiency of this
arrangement and the criticism it has attracted suggests
that monetary reform is likely in the future. Countries
within the EU locked into a single currency would be
ill-placed to undertake such reforms, tied to an outmoded,
centralist, power-based financial system.

Wednesday 25th June
from 7.00pm

"GENETICALLY
MODIFIED NATION" ­ DEBATE

Peter Lillford,
York University & Claire Oxborrow, Friends of the
Earth

The government
is encouraging a public debate about genetically modified
crops (GM), before they decide if GM is to be grown
on a commercial basis in the UK. This is your chance
to find out more about the implications of genetically
modified crops and to put your view to the government.SPEAKER FOR GM - Peter Lillford
CBE ­ Prof. Public Awareness of Science, York University.
SPEAKER AGAINST GM - Claire Oxborrow - Head of Food
Campaigns at Friends of the Earth·
The speakers will put forward their point of view after
which the debate attendees will discuss their own views
in small groups. The results will be recorded on feed
back forms and sent to the UK Government as a true representation
of the public view. Feedback from GM Debates across
the country must be submitted by 18th July: the results
will be evaluated by an independent market research

Wednesday
25th June: 6pm

The
role of the armed forces in environmental protection.

Major
General Eustace D'Souza (retired) (India)

Committee
Room 6, House of Commons, Westminster, London W1: Free

Michael
Harbottle Memorial Lecture of the One World Trust

Major General
Eustace D'Soouza PVSM became Secretary General of the
World Wildlife Fund for India on his retirement. He subsequently
served two terms as Consultant for South Asia to the International
Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). He has been the
motivating force to create within the Indian armed services
(in the navy, army and air force) a structure for environmental
protection so that today every unit has a specific environmental
role to play. He regards this as central to global security
and part of the whole 'web of life'.

Fri/Saturday
June 27-28th

24
HOURS FOR TRADE JUSTICE

Bradford
Trade Justice

Including
Trade training, a gathering in Centenary Square, Bradford,
and a "Great Trade Debate"

Prof. Pollock is head of the Public Health Policy Unit
at UCL and director of Research and Development at UCL
Hospitals at UCL Trust. Her work on PFIs has been a
major intervention and she has written on globalisation
and Health. She will be speaking on whether the NHS
Plan and Foundation Hospital Trust lead to greater privatisation
of health care funding and delivery. She has written
reports on the PPP (Private Public Partnership) and
the agenda for privatisation of the Welfare State. (For
further information see University College London, School
of Public Policy)

Thursday 19th
June 2003

Richard Murphy

DEBT-BASED FINANCE:
Publicly Created Money and Pensions as Constructive Alternatives

Forum for Stable
Currencies at the House of Lords,Westminster,
London SW1

Richard
Murphy is an economics graduate and chartered accountant.
He trained with what is now KPMG before starting his
own firm at the age of 26. This grew to have three partners
and eight hundred clients before he and his partners
sold it in 2000 to concentrate on other activities.
He has also been chairman, chief executive or finance
director of nine SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises)
over the last 15 years and continues his active involvement
in the commercial economy at present. Richard has written
on taxation and accounting matters for many years, both
within the profession and now as a regular contributor
to the Observer. He campaigned for Oxfam in the 1980s
and has been involved in new economics in some way since
the first TOES (The Other Economic Summit). He now campaigns
on reform in three areas: international tax, pensions,
and the money supply. He created the economic thinking
behind the "People's Pensions" report published
in 2003 and wrote most of the Briefing Document for
Early Day Motion 854. He is currently undertaking work
on the economics of extortionate lending for the New
Economics Foundation, Church Action on Poverty and the
Debt on the Doorstep Campaign.

Dr.
Vineeta Gupta is General Secretary of Insaaf International,
a Punjab-based human rights group committed to social
justice, where she works on efforts to disclose the
harmful effects of World Bank user fees on health care.
Dr. Gupta and members of the WBBoycott will discuss
the social, economic and environmental impact of the
WB and explore means of effective local resistance to
its destructive economic policies. The Boycott is an
international coalition of grassroots groups which seeks
to increase financial and political pressure on the
World Bank by discouraging local institutions from investing
in its bonds, from which it raises 80% of its money.
Since its launch in April 2000, over 75 institutional
investors have joined the Boycott, including trade unions
such as The International Brotherhood of Teamsters,
religious groups such as Pax Christi (USA), banks such
as the Co-operative Bank UK, and SRI firms such as the
Calvert Group. For further information:
- For further
information

This café aims to give a general overview of
the economical and social issues Zimbabwe is going through
and the consequences it can have to a wider scale in
Africa. Dr Brighton Chireka, Chairman of the Zimbabwe
Democracy Trust organisation in London, will discuss
and answer your questions regarding the political actions
of President M. Robert Mugabe.